Some contradictions of the welfare state: Revisited

It is now 40 years since the publication of Claus Offe's classical paper, Some Contradictions of the Modern Welfare State. Much change has occurred to the form and content of welfare states over the intervening years, yet in addition to change, continuities are very much evident, and it is this constellation of developments – alongside anniversarial convenience – which has motivated a re-examination of Offe's seminal work on the contradictions of welfare states. This anniversary article re-introduces and provides a critique of the original paper before moving on to a historical comparison of the major political economic and societal differences which sets the scene for a concluding review of the major contradictions within welfare states in contemporary times. The paper argues that the core historical contradiction identified by Offe – that between the accumulation requirements of capital and the legitimation requirements of political elites to satiate the welfare needs of populations – remains at the core of contemporary contradictions.